1. Eat less than 20g net carbs per day if you want to get into ketosis. Net carbs are calculated by subtracting the fiber grams (or sugar alcohols in some cases) from the total carb grams. Don’t guess – you’d be surprised how many grams of carbs there are in things you might have considered “free” like onions, garlic, tomatoes, and kale, just to name a few.
You might want to consider using a calprie counter/tool to help you determine the amount of calories, fat, protein, etc in food. I find MY Fitness Pal to be eztremely useful. You put in the type of food and it calculates all those tricky numbers for you. You can even see the macros (percentages) or set your own.it might seem a bit confusing at first but you’ll get the hang of it. Best of luck!
It seems strange that a diet that calls for more fat can raise “good” cholesterol and lower “bad” cholesterol, but ketogenic diets are linked to just that. It may be because the lower levels of insulin that result from these diets can stop your body from making more cholesterol. That means you’re less likely to have high blood pressure, hardened arteries, heart failure, and other heart conditions.

Hi Cyn, The numbers are general guidelines but will vary depending on many factors, such as activity level, insulin resistance, weight and more. There is no single magic number, just conventional recommendations that are a good starting point. I will have a macro calculator coming soon that will help determine what is best for each person, but even then it’s an approximation. The only way to know for sure is to test. If keto is your goal, it’s usually best to start lower and then see if you can stay in ketosis when increasing.

UPDATE: Hi! It’s been 4 weeks already. I am still cooking keto and enjoying many delicious dessert too! I have finally convinced my husband to totally convert to keto food. It’s only been one week since he stopped using diet package food. He is very happy with the food he get to eat and still losing weight but much slower pace this week. That’s because I have been giving him larger portions as this is the first week for him. Since he was already on low carb diet prior to this, keto flue may be not as bad but still want to keep him happy and better transition experience. Meanwhile, I get to cook keto for the whole family and really enjoying the new way of eating and cooking. I have lost total of 6 lb but that was enough to prove to my husband eating bacon and butter is ok as long as we are on keto diet. I was only doing this to convert my husband since he doesn’t have any interest in nutrition or theory behind it, so what he sees is what he believes. 6 lb may not sounds a lot for 4 weeks but I was already below average weight , so it was a lot of loss for me. I think it’s a science 5-30-65 combination works on everyone. Now I just eat more portions of everything ,so we can still eat same food. Today, he had a once a week appointment with his ideal protein dietitian. Seems like they are not convinced that he can still continue to lose weight unless he eat their packaged food. I plan to continue sending him there for once a week appointment , so he sill have something to be accountable for. Next few weeks, I’m hoping he won’t be as hungry so I can start portion control his food without his knowledge, LOL.
Please try reading jason fungs book that Melissa recommended, even though you are familiar with IF. I’ve only read the introduction and some from his blog as well as his posts on dietdoctor.com and it looks like sometimes if your insulin sensitivity is very damaged it could require longer fasts to get it back in check. Dr. Fung states that everything in his book is available in his blog, just that the book is a more organized way to access it but he wants everyone to have access to this life changing information. The testimonial from Jimmy Moore was eye opening where he recounted his experiences with IF
I’d like to add to your last point because my uterus hated me for a week! I have the IUD (Mirena) and I honestly don’t remember when my last period was, guesstimating I’d say 8 months ago. Since having the IUD I only spot and rarely have a period (I’ve had it since 2014), but OMG my hormones must’ve been all over the place because I not only got a heavy period but I had it for 9 days straight!

Looking for a bit of guidance / inspiration here!! I have been eating in a low carb manner for many years and due to increased blood sugar decided to try a Keto diet. I’ve been living on meat, eggs & cheese for the past 6 weeks or so & have never gotten into ketosis. I check the ketones with a blood monitor and never get higher than 0.3, not a high enough level to be in ketosis. All fruit and most veggies raise my BG so they have been eliminated from my diet. To complicate things I have had many surgeries & injuries that don’t allow me to get any exercise. Any suggestions?

When you said the following my inhibitions dropped to zero. Probably because I just could not stop laughing, and the reality at the base of your putting it this way -“Don’t obsessively plan everything and overwhelm yourself so it feels harder than it has to. This may be controversial for some, but I’m here to tell you not to worry about calories, or nitrates, or Omega 3 vs Omega 6, or if the meat you’re eating skipped about on acres of lush pastureland, while being hand fed organic vegan feed by the tiny perfect hands of 1000 virgin milkmaids.”
Sleep enough – for most people at least seven hours per night on average – and keep stress under control. Sleep deprivation and stress hormones raise blood sugar levels, slowing ketosis and weight loss a bit. Plus they might make it harder to stick to a keto diet, and resist temptations. So while handling sleep and stress will not get you into ketosis on it’s own, it’s still worth thinking about.